


Time and Time Again: a Love Eternal

by Nellosel



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Depression, Fantasy, Implied Character Death, Implied homophobia, M/M, Misunderstandings, Public Display of Affection, Slight mafia au, Soul Mate AU, Soulmates, Time Travel, Victor's name spelled with a k, World War II mention, Yakov also gets mentioned, angst with questionable happy ending, bigbangonice2018, mentions of Phichit and Yuri, slight Sci-Fi AU, though I think it's happy haha, use of French and Italian in the fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-11
Updated: 2018-02-11
Packaged: 2019-03-16 22:49:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 16,995
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13646046
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nellosel/pseuds/Nellosel
Summary: People say history repeats itself, but do they know love does as well?Katsuki Yuuri's and Viktor Nikiforov's souls are as old as time itself. They are soulmates, reincarnating through centuries, where they always find each other; though only one of them remembers all their lives together, while the other always have to recall it. There can be many issues with a normal relationship – what happens when that's elevated to an even higher level of connection? And how can Yuuri accept that Fate is not something that can easily be changed?--For the Big Bang!!! on ICE challenge





	Time and Time Again: a Love Eternal

**Author's Note:**

> Well, hello there! This has come now, too. 
> 
> I was very happy that I could finish this one. It took a lot of effort, and honestly, I don't even know how good it is ahahah. I love the concept of soul mates, so when I eventually signed up for this, I knew I'd be using this theme to develop into a full fledged fic. I had the opportunity to work together with two amazing artists, Circle Walker and Bernie, who created some amazing pieces of art (they even worked together on one!), which you can find [here](https://circlewalkerhk.tumblr.com/post/170746474687/purpose-in-life-i-joined-bigbangonice-and-this) and [here](https://osobhi.tumblr.com/post/170755703494/time-and-time-again-based-on-fic-by-nellosel-for). 
> 
> As for some inspiration for the fic, I would like to direct your attention [to this post](http://nellosel.tumblr.com/post/169034855089/time-and-time-again-a-love-eternal-inspiration) where I collected music (in an ordered playlist) and art for different scenes of the fic. I also have a list of expressions I used in the fic, but for the sake of convenience, I shall copy it here as well:  
> Madame Lefèvre dit que c’est très magnifique. – Mrs. Lefèvre says it’s very beautiful.  
> Chéri, c’est bien. – Darling, it’s okay.  
> J'ai envie de choux à la crème. – I want cream puffs (choux à la crème).  
> Bien sûr. – Of course.  
> mon chéri – Honey (endearment)  
> il maestro – master (as in: maestro Caravaggio – master Caravaggio)
> 
> I'm like 79% sure these are correct. If not, please leave a comment so I can edit it.
> 
> Thank you for reading, and happy BBOI!

You can’t stop the cycle.

 

_ stop stop stop stop _

 

The cycle will continue, it will always repeat again and again and again. You are powerless. You will always be here, just like he will always be here.

 

_ PLEASE stop please I beg you stop this please _

 

The cycle rules all. You are just a pawn. You do not make the rules here.

 

_ PLEASE! please don’t do this, think of Him! I don’t care about me, I don’t, I really don’t, but spare Him please I beg you spare HIM _

 

It is absolute. You have no power here.

 

_ THIS IS UNFAIR _

 

Life is rarely fair.

 

\---

 

He woke up, sickly sweat coating his whole body. His shoulders jerked up and down as he labored through the act of panicked breathing. He bent forward, dropping his forehead into his palms, and tried to massage away the massive headache that was doing its level best to rip his skull apart. His room was so cold he saw his own breath.

After a few minutes, he started to calm down. He slowly settled back into the nest he made from his bedsheets, and just stared at his ceiling.

It never got better. No matter how much he tried, he had the same conversation in his head. Every time he attempted to change the course of “Fate” (what sick bastard would call this torment Fate?), it always snapped right back into place, and his path was again shoved towards the inevitable destination where he would be with Him.

He remembered the times when this was still exciting. He remembered the giddy happiness. He literally could not wait for their paths in life to intertwine and for them to spend His time together, again and again. At first it was so amazing he didn’t care that it was only him who survived when the cycle started anew. The love that connected them was older than anything on this Earth, and coming together again and again was so thrilling he didn’t much consider what was actually happening to them. That came later.

“Yuuri! Please come downstairs!” Oh, it was his … well, this body’s mother. He sighed, and sat up to go do whatever had to be done. He put on a thick cotton coat, pushed his feet into his slippers, and went to the hot spring’s office where he knew he could find her.

She was doing accounting when he slid the door open and stepped inside. She looked up, and gave him a warm smile.

“There you are,” she said. “Could you please rake the leaves together on the front lawn? A team building group will arrive later this evening.”

Ugh, businessmen. They were the most obnoxious of all. They thought just because they were in an onsen, it automatically gave them a blanket consent to do whatever they wanted. He hated the heavy smell of alcohol and cheap cigarettes that seemed to seep into every single crevice of the rooms they were assigned to. Not to mention they kept harassing his sister all the time as if she were a call girl hired specifically for their entertainment. Now, Mari was no damsel in distress, she could hold her ground… but still.

That was none of his concern though, aside from the general obnoxiousness of team building retreats. He was the maintenance guy, he didn’t get in contact with patrons much. He nodded, and turned around to go outside.

He grabbed the rake from the storage room, wrapped a scarf around his neck, and after pushing his feet into a pair of well-worn boots, he stepped outside.

Cold wind blew over Hasetsu that October. Though they were oceanside, meaning it should have been a little less harsh, that October had particularly low temperatures. He didn’t mind the weather much as it meant more customers at the inn besides the local regulars. Who wouldn’t love a warm tub of spring water on a cold miserable day? Especially when the food after was divine. His features pulled into an amused little smile as he did a quick run over the lawn to get the bulk of the leaves off. The inn was doing better thanks to the chilly weather, which was always something to be thankful for.

As he grabbed fistfuls of leaves and stuffed them into huge green bags issued to collect organic waste, his mind supplied him with a memory he thought he buried ages ago. As his hand reached down to grab another bunch of leaves, suddenly a golden veil dropped on his surroundings. His skin warmed up and started glowing with an ethereal yellow hue.

As he looked up, he saw  _ le Jardin des Tuileries at a beautiful mid-September afternoon. The leaves on the well-trimmed trees were already changing, and beautiful colors were scattered all across the still vibrant green lawn. He heard someone laugh next to him, a sound that sent shivers down his spine. He turned towards the source and saw the most beautiful human being his eyes ever beheld. _

_ He was the same height as him, all slender and marvellously androgynous. His hair, a wonderful shade of almost white blonde, was tied together into one long tail that tumbled over his left shoulder, just to curl underneath the lapel of his jacket. It wasn’t in fashion – in fact, his whole wardrobe was a bit odd –, but they were in Paris, the city of eccentric artists. He was allowed some slack. _

_ He laughed again, his bright blue eyes shining with mirth and love for him. _

_ “Julien!” he called him, reaching for his hand to squeeze and pull him forward. “Oh, Julien, we have to go see la Tour Eiffel. Madame Lefèvre dit que c’est très magnifique. We have to go on top!” _

_ His expression turned into a frown. He let himself be pulled forward, but he didn’t feel up for the task at all. _

_ “Uh, I don’t know about that, Victor,” he said, though he kept walking with him, hand in hand. Nobody really paid attention to that fact. Many people thought that was just them being really good friends. If only they knew. “I don’t much like heights.” _

_ Victor’s smile faded at that sentence. He hated when Victor was sad, he just wanted him to be happy all the time, but he really didn’t feel like going up la Tour Eiffel. Even the thought made him shiver with cold sweat. He looked away from Victor, and felt a little embarrassed and ashamed. He shouldn’t have protested. _

_ Victor stepped closer, and brushed his fringe away from his face to turn it towards him. _

_ “Chéri, c’est bien,” Victor said, smiling at him. He couldn’t help but smile back, and that made him feel a little better. “We don’t have to see it. We can go have some cake and tea!” _

_ That made him laugh. Victor had a special taste for anything sweet. That was something that kept occurring over the ages. _

_ “Okay,” he replied. “I’m in. What do you feel up for?” _

_ Victor tapped his index finger against his lips as he was thinking, and suddenly he felt like kissing those perfectly full lips. They couldn’t though: as promiscuous as Paris sometimes was, that would have been too much for people. _

_ “Odette Paris! J'ai envie de choux à la crème,” Victor said, and smiled at him. He nodded, and they started to walk towards le Louvre. Victor started singing a lyricless tune while he swung their hands back and forth between them. He smiled, and he felt his mood lighten. _

_ Suddenly, Victor stopped, which dragged him back as well. Victor let go of his hand, and in that one second where he turned towards him to ask what happened, he got a huge pile of leaves thrown in his face. He spluttered and stumbled back in surprise. _

_ “Got you!” Victor exclaimed, laughing at his baffled face. He didn’t have to be told twice: he reached down to grab some leaves and started throwing what he had in his hands at Victor, who followed suit. Soon, they were both covered in the fallen foliage. They laughed loud, and Victor grabbed another handful of leaves to throw in his face. As the leaves hit his face, he  _ suddenly shook out of the memory, and found himself back at their front lawn in Hasetsu. His scarf was covered in wet leaves that Mari threw at him. She laughed at his confused expression, and then dragged a lungful of smoke from her lit cigarette.

“Wake up, sleepyhead,” she said, kicking at a few stray leaves. “You were so out of it, I thought you fell asleep while raking.”

He blinked again, and then again. These flashbacks usually came suddenly and without a warning and there wasn’t much if anything he could do about it. He let out the breath he didn’t know he was holding in and watched it leave his lungs with a white trail, dimly glimmering with memories of the golden past.

“No, it’s just a boring job, that’s all,” he replied to Mari. With that, he grabbed the rake again, this time to clean up the rest of the leaves. He tried not to think about his past lives that much, because otherwise he would have gotten too overwhelmed with memories to function. He also knew how this body of his could get easily anxious, so besides that, the mistakes he made with it were also off the plate.

Mari shrugged and finished off her cigarette.

“Mom told me to tell you that you’re free to go once you’re finished.” The sentence sounded  _ so  _ nonchalant he would have missed the double meaning if he didn’t know what it actually was about. He smiled a little, and simply just nodded. Mari responded with a nod on her own. She turned around to go in the house, quietly sliding the door behind her shut.

He finished up his work, put the equipment back to the storage room alongside with the bags. He made a mental note to put the bags outside the next time they were collecting organic waste. He then went inside, put his boots back on the shoe rack, and then headed to his room to collect his training gear.

“Oh, you’re done?” His mother asked when he passed her. She was getting fresh yukatas out for the guests.

“Yeah, I’ll just head down to the rink for a bit,” he replied. He stopped to help her get the obis off the shelf that were too high up. She smiled up at him, silently thanking him for his help.

“Don’t stay out too long, alright?” she told him, and patted his cheek. He smiled at her in return, and leaned into her touch a little. It felt nice. Soothing, after the flashback he just had.

“ _ Bien sûr _ ,” he replied, but only when her eyebrows drew together did he realize he may not have said that in Japanese.

“Since when do you know French?” she asked, sounding confused. He laughed awkwardly, gave her a kiss, and just backed away.

“Oh, Giacometti taught me a little,” he said. “You remember the Swiss guy? Insists on his language being the best.” His mother nodded, seemingly understanding. She knew Christophe, she even met him once when his family came to see him at an event.

He nodded, and then just walked away to his room. Oh, how he hoped his mother didn’t think there was something wrong other than still being out of life itself.

She was utterly worried about him, they all were. It was only little over a year since he flunked his first GP event of the season and then all the rest of his events, completely disqualifying himself from anything further. But what could he have done? It was the very first time he saw Him again, in all his gorgeous, glorious self. He was so thoroughly disturbed in the peaceful denial he wrapped around himself that before he realized, he finished completely last.

The icing on top of the misery cake was the complete cluelessness on His face, when he approached him after the event.

He didn’t remember.

And so his world and soul shattered into a million pieces, so many he thought he could never fit together again.

He broke contact with his coach, went back to university, completed his BA, packed up his life at Detroit, and then moved back in with his parents. He spent his first month back hiding in his room, and then he slowly started helping around the house once he felt like the biggest part of his disappointment subsided. He suspected his parents told others not to bother him about his skating: even his old dance teacher left him alone, even though normally she would’ve jumped at the opportunity to ask him about it. He could simply go around the inn, doing repairwork and whatever his parents asked for, and everyone pretended that was the norm.

After four months, he worked the courage up to go to the local rink. He spent a good 20 minutes just staring at the unmarked sheet of ice, simply contemplating stepping out on it. He had a lot of conflicting emotions inside his head. He leaned on the boards and just watched the bright white surface.

On the one hand, he had his pressing emotions of worthlessness and feeling like a failure. He always strived to do the best in each of the lives he was granted, to use the talents he was given in that certain body to the best of his capabilities. He was a singer, a painter, a writer, an accountant, a politician… He was everything in the past, and he always succeeded. It was a novel and entirely unpleasant feeling, to watch himself crash and burn at a competition he was supposed to do good at. Not only was this hurting his eternal soul’s pride or what was left of it, but it was a huge weight on his present self’s shoulder. This kid that he was, he doubted his skating skills even on the best of days, so failing a competition didn’t help him either.

On the other hand… He had the dilemma of meeting his soulmate for the first time in this lifetime, and the lack of recognition on his part. It was heartbreaking. He didn’t know what to do about it. This has never been an issue. He couldn’t figure out if these new bodies they had were experiencing some connectivity issues, or the Fates have finally decided to stop playing with his life. But then why leave these memories? To still torture him, letting him dream of the past he had and the future he never will have? To know that the passionate, burning love he had will never be reciprocated the way it has been before? He just did not know how to deal with this, so mostly he just didn’t.

That was where he found himself again. After he picked his gear up, biked to the rink, and got changed, he ended up staring at the ice for 20 minutes, thinking about everything and nothing all at once. His old friends didn’t bother him anymore as they did before: he guessed that was because he never really replied when they asked him something. They might have also understood how he was simply not ready to talk.

He just stood there, watching the ice, contemplating where all of it went so wrong. He didn’t have an answer. All the centuries he lived, and he never had an answer to why things happened the way they happened. His essence always survived, while his beautiful other’s never did; he always remembered their pasts, while the other magical soul only did when they met again. Why that happened, he never knew, but up until now, he always remembered. So why not now? He didn’t get it at all.

For the most part, he had been putting all his frustration and yearning into this one program. It was choreographed by Him to a beautiful tune, and when he performed, it was simply out of this world magical. No matter how many times he watched it, he always had a feeling that things weren’t so completely lost yet; he might share his feelings, he just didn’t know right now. Everything he needed to know, wanted so badly know it’s there, was in fact present in the program, or so he believed.

So he skated and skated, feeling even this tiny little connection with Him appease his hurting soul. He twisted and turned, imagining how it would be to have Him there, smiling at him with that beautiful dazzling smile that never failed to make his heart stop. He jumped, and imagined landing into His waiting, embracing arms. He yearned so deeply for Him, his heart broke with it.

This time, he pushed a little further to be even more perfect. He put every little drop of anxiety, anger, and loneliness into the dance, and he could feel tears gathering under his closed eyelids. Oh god, if only He could see it too.

When he finished dancing, he held the final pose while he breathed heavily. Suddenly, the silence was broken by sniffling and clapping. He turned his head towards the source, and saw Yuuko standing at the boards, clapping and crying.

“Oh Yuuri, you really do love him, don’t you?” she asked then, her voice quivering. He turned fully to her and smiled. He didn’t need to ask who she meant by that.

“I do,” he said simply. She gasped, and started to cry even harder. He rushed to her side, offering her tissues and telling her that it was fine. After all, she didn’t know just how deeply these emotions ran.

He made sure Yuuko was alright, changed from his workout clothes to his street clothes, got on his bike, and biked home. As he moved through the quiet, dark city, in a passing, yellowy second, he could feel his soul healing, just for a tiny bit. He didn’t feel the missing presence of his soulmate as acutely as he usually did, and if he had to be honest, that was a good thing. He didn’t know where this was going at all, so any distraction that made it easier for him was welcome in his books. He biked home, had a fun dinner with the regulars (Sagan Tosu was on TV), and then went to soak in the hot water for a while.

He had no other duties for the night, so once he wished everyone a good night (and told his Dad not to give Minako-sensei any more beer), he went back to his room, to just lounge around. He changed the cold sweaty sheets to fresh new ones, and once he opened the window to let some cool air in, he felt much better in his room. He skipped going through the news that night, and simply just went to sleep.

For the first time that night, he had no nightmares.

The next day greeted him with a constant vibration of his phone. He mumbled something about turning notifications off for Phichit, though he still reached for it to check his messages. What he saw there made him drop out of his bed due to shock.

The Nishigori triplets, Yuuko’s little children, uploaded his dance from yesterday to YouTube, and it went viral, reaching every single corner of the Internet. “Japanese skater Yuuri Katsuki dancing Russian skating champion Viktor Nikiforov’s routine!” Oh for the love of everything. For a hot second there, he contemplated going back to sleep. Maybe this all was just a very bad dream.

Unfortunately, the world wasn’t so kind to him. His phone kept vibrating, and a few minutes later, his sister nearly kicked the door in she was in such a hurry to get in his room.

“Yuuri what did you do!” she shouted at him, while she held her phone out to show the news article he just read.

“I didn’t do anything!” he replied with the same tone. “Ask the Nishigoris!”

“Gah, those stupid triplets,” she fumed. “Why do they have to push their little noses into everyone’s business?”

That mellowed his anger out a little. They were just children, probably being scolded by their mother right at that second anyway.

“It’s okay, Mari, leave it be,” he told her, and got out of bed to put on a cardigan. He wanted some breakfast.

“No, it’s not okay!” she protested. “What if he sees it? What if Nikiforov asks you about it?”

His mind stopped functioning for a second hearing that. He didn’t even consider that aspect. What if He sees? What if He contacts him about it?

He had no mental space to process that option. He had no capacity left to even think of that idea. He sighed heavily, and slipped his feet into his slippers.

“I’ll deal with that if the time comes,” he said, and moved past a very surprised Mari. “Though I doubt it will.”

He left it at that. He went and had breakfast, and then asked his parents if there was anything to be done. One of the showerheads had some issues at the female section, so he got his toolkit out to fix that.

He saw how everyone, his parents, sister, and even the hungover businessmen, wanted to ask him the same questions the news articles also asked. Why he did it, what it meant, what this means in terms of his career… Questions he was nowhere near ready to answer. Yuuko called the inn to apologize when he didn’t pick his phone up (he purposefully left it in his room), but other than that, nothing happened. He fixed a few more things around the house – _  someone  _ burnt another hole in the door of her room –, then made a run to the next town to get some fresh produce. There was this century-old man with the most amazing horseradish in the entire region. He had to drive one hour there and one back in order to get the radish, but it didn’t matter.

He spent his night in. He didn’t go skating: he didn’t think he could face Yuuko without feeling angry and then guilty about it all. So he stayed home, helped Mari clean an extra room, ate with the regulars, and then went to bed. He turned his phone off because he didn’t want to see the news and notifications that kept pouring in. He just wanted this long and horrible day to be over. He didn’t even have a shower or change to his nighttime clothes: he simply climbed under his blankets, and then willed himself to sleep, which came to him after a while.

The next day when he woke up, the usual dim October morning was entirely different. A bright light seeped through his shades, making him blink in confusion. He sat up and pulled the shades away, revealing the backyard covered in a sheet of white snow. He stared at the snow for a full minute till his mind caught up, and then he realized he’d have to sweep the walkways, or even shovel snow, and that made him groan. He hoped this particular activity would become part of each morning a bit later, but he had no luck.

He got dressed and went to have breakfast. He just finished grilling his fish when Minako burst through the door, gasping for air. He looked at her, surprised to find her here at this early an hour.

“Y-yuuri… Yuuri, you gotta come,” she rasped out once she gathered herself enough to force the words out. She leaned against the wall, and put her hand over her heart, seemingly willing it to stop beating so fast.

“What happened?” he asked, confused by her urgency.

“Viktor Nikiforov… is here, in Hasetsu. He’s walking around and asking about you, and he keeps repeating some weird thing about soulmates,” she told him.

The world stopped for a whole minute.

He didn’t know how to respond. He understood the words, he got that He was here, but he also could not comprehend what Minako said. Him, here? That was so completely out of the possibilities that could happen that he just stood there, with a spatula in his hand, his mind working and not working at all. He didn’t know what to do.

“Aren’t you going to go get him?” Minako asked, verbally nudging him to move and act.

“But… what? Why?” he asked, still utterly confused. Get Him? Why should he? He surely wasn’t there because of him…

“Because he’s here to see you, dumbass!” Minako burst out. She marched up to him and took the spatula out of his hand. “Go get him!”

That spurred him into action. He took a step and then another and before he knew, he was rushing to force his feet into his shoes and wrap himself up. He ran outside, not even shutting the door behind him. As soon as he took that first step, he could feel a pull deep inside his gut that drew him in and gave him a sense of urgency.  _ You need to get to Him now go please hurry He's out there waiting for you run run run to Him _

Consciously he had no idea where Viktor went or where He was, but inside his heart, his everlasting soul, a pulsating sense of knowledge rested that told him where exactly he had to go. He ran full speed, not even paying attention to traffic, but miraculously everything went right by him. He ran as fast as he could, and when he finally saw Viktor, he felt like as if his feet grew wings. He flew across the bridge that connected the two parts of the town.

“Viktor!!” he shouted as loud as he could, but he guessed it didn’t matter: even if he had whispered His name, He would have heard.

Viktor turned around. His beautiful angelic face displayed a wide range of emotions from thrill to anguish. He sobbed, looking like he was finally able to take the first full lung’s breath in a very long time.

“Yuuri!!” he cried his name out, and suddenly his world shifted even more than it already did. He finally had the name in his possession. He was Yuuri, and he was His.

Viktor opened his arms wide, while every fiber of his being screamed for an embrace. Yuuri ran and ran until he finally reached Viktor and crashed against him, hugging his body so close. He never wanted to let go. He suddenly realized he was crying, just like Viktor was.

“Oh Yuuri,” Viktor gasped, burying his face into Yuuri’s scarf. His whole body was shaking with emotions, just like Yuuri’s body shook with the knowledge that this was indeed happening. “Oh my God I didn’t know, but now I do. I missed you so much. I’m so happy.”

Yuuri didn’t say anything as he didn’t know whether he could reply at all. He just held Viktor’s body in a tight embrace, and marveled at the feeling of this foreign yet completely familiar body and how good it felt to hold him. He buried his fingers in Viktor’s hair, remembering how amazing that sensation used to be over the lifetimes, and even now it felt incredible. He massaged Viktor’s scalp with soft movements, which earned him a moan and Viktor cuddling even closer to him. Snow started to fall and coat them in a thin layer of white flakes, but neither of them really cared at all.

“So you remember everything?” Yuuri asked, just to make sure. Viktor nodded against his neck, probably wiping snot all over his scarf, but Yuuri couldn’t care for the world.

“I do, yeah,” he mumbled, and those three words the most beautiful ones Yuuri has ever heard. He cuddled closer to Viktor, pushing his cold nose into his neck, breathing in his scent. It was new but not, familiar notes mixed with new ones that was uniquely of this body. Yuuri loved it.

After a while, when Yuuri felt like he finally got an adequate dose of Viktor hugs, they slightly moved apart. Viktor’s eyes were burning bright, but this time with all the memories he had of their previous lifetimes. It was the most beautiful sight Yuuri has ever seen.

“Where did you leave your things?” he asked, suddenly remembering something so mundane as luggage. Viktor looked at him sort of dazed, and Yuuri worried for a second that something happened. “Um, Viktor?”

“Holy fuck you’re gorgeous,” Viktor mumbled. That made Yuuri laugh.

“Alright Romeo,” he said, smiling at Viktor who smiled back, looking like he was so helplessly in love with him and not minding it one bit. “Let’s go get your stuff, okay? And then we’ll go home.”

Viktor nodded and took his hand. They started walking, their breaths coming out as white puffs of air. Again, Yuuri smiled at Viktor, who smiled in return. They simply couldn’t help but to smile.

“So, where’s your stuff?” Yuuri asked again once they were across the bridge.

“Uh…” Viktor seemed like he was blushing, which was an incredible feat on top of his cold-reddened cheeks. “I left it at the luggage lockers. The sweet train station staff is looking after Makkachin.”

“Wait, why did you bring the dog?” Yuuri asked, a little baffled.

“Well, I couldn’t just leave him all alone in Saint Petersburg now could I? Yakov and the others are out of town too.” Viktor replied, looking at Yuuri. “Besides, he’s  _ our  _ dog now. I wanted him to meet you.”

Those words sent a delicious shiver down Yuuri’s spine. The fact that this man, his soulmate, the only person he’d ever be perfect for and vice versa, called his dog  _ theirs, _  a shared possession, made Yuuri want to scream with joy.

He just sighed and turned his face up towards the sky, closing his eyes.

“You still know how you can get to me,” he mumbled, to which Viktor replied with a sweet giggle.

“I have always known how to do that,  _ mon chéri _ ,” he said, humor ringing in his voice. Yuuri couldn’t help but to smile.

Their walk to the train station wasn’t too long, and during that time, they talked up a storm. Viktor filled Yuuri in on what happened and how he came to remember: he apparently saw the video the triplets put up on YouTube, and when he did, everything came to him.

“I felt like my head was about to burst,” Viktor admitted, reaching up with his free hand to push his fringe back from his eyes. Yuuri squeezed the hand he was holding, silently encouraging him to continue. “It was… Pretty bad. But once I got the headache and confusion under control, it was amazing. I had so many wonderful memories with you! I just had to get to you.” Viktor looked into Yuuri’s eyes, smiling widely. “And that’s why I’m here.”

Yuuri nodded. That made sense. He knew how much trouble his memories could cause when he first gained full consciousness: he had a lot of headaches, too, and when he was little, he didn’t know he should filter what he talked about. This caused a lot of issues between him and his parents, though Yuuri wanted to believe they were past that. He knew how distressing it was when you finally remembered, so he was more than happy to have Viktor with him to remember. It was always easier to do it with your soulmate.

He squeezed Viktor’s hand again and brought it up to his lips to kiss his knuckles.

“I’m glad you’re here,” he said sincerely, breathing the words against Viktor’s skin. Viktor gasped, and reached out with his other hand, grasping Yuuri’s neck and drawing him in, to passionately kiss his cold lips. Yuuri closed his eyes and melted into Viktor’s touch, letting go of his hand just so he could wrap both of his arms around Viktor’s neck to hold him there. The kiss was everything he ever had before and hoped to still have; he kissed with every inch of his being, to convey the deepest and most overwhelming emotion that vibrated through his body and soul. From the way Viktor moaned into the kiss, breathing him in as if he needed nothing else but him to live, Yuuri could only assume he felt the same.

After a few minutes of doing nothing but absorbing each other’s presence, they parted, while both of them gasped for air.

“Well, that was better than anything I’ve ever experienced,” Viktor breathed, starting at Yuuri completely dazed. Yuuri laughed, feeling a little out of breath and as if his brain was a little mushy.

“Yeah, I can relate,” he replied. He stepped back a little, and took Viktor’s hand in his again. “Let’s go get your stuff, so we can go back to the inn and talk.”

Viktor agreed so they started walking again. The station was really close by then, and when they approached the building, they saw Makkachin jumping up and down in the staff room, poking his nose against the glass. Viktor laughed and let go of Yuuri’s hand to run ahead. Yuuri smiled fondly at his partner, and followed him to the station.

Though Yuuri thought the staff would be annoyed with the fact that they had to supervise a dog, they were really happy to have Makkachin. Yuuri only saw photos of the dog, so it was quite the surprise when the cute little poodle ended up reaching his hips in height. He was a very well mannered dog, and sat patiently while people petted his curly fur. The only time he started jumping around was when Viktor appeared, but even then a pet on the head made him sit pretty on the ground.

They collected everything Viktor brought, which wasn’t too much though Viktor said he had more on the way.

“Viktor,” Yuuri moaned when he explained what’s getting shipped over. He shook his head and smiled at Viktor. They were already out of the station and walking towards the inn. Makkachin was walking a pace or two ahead of them, poking at the snow covering the sidewalk with his nose. “You didn’t need to do that. You could have just come visit. Things will be much easier, now that you remember.”

Viktor shook his head, and just looked at Yuuri with an unreadable expression.

“No,” he said. “I had to be with you. It doesn’t matter it means I will have to … adapt. I just have to be with you.”

Yuuri sighed, and shook his head again. He knew how deeply the frantic need to be with your soulmate can go, so he didn’t exactly blame him for doing what he did, but… The Viktor in this lifetime had obligations and a career that couldn’t just simply be abandoned. Yuuri didn’t want Viktor to give his life up for him, and that was actually what was happening.

“Sweetheart, I know,” he said after a while. They reached a quiet part of town, where the cobblestone street was lined with beautiful traditional villas. Snow already started gathering on the lacquered tiles. “I completely understand how you feel, but this is definitely not something to give a career up over. Besides, I’m definitely not worth doing all that for.”

Viktor stopped, which jerked Yuuri back as well. When he looked back at Viktor, he saw something he was all too familiar with from the past: anger.

“Don’t be so condescending,” Viktor snapped at Yuuri, his brows drawn together. “I made this decision myself, who are you to lecture me on whether it was a good decision or not? Also, stop playing the ‘I’m not worth it’ card. How many times did you have to sacrifice your life for me?”

Yuuri’s expression turned sour at that.

“A lot less than the number of times you had to do the same,” he grumbled, turning away from Viktor. “I have the advantage here, remember?”

Viktor exhaled loudly and let go of Yuuri’s hand. Yuuri felt the loss immediately – as if his hand went numb –, but he could hold his reactions in, minus one angry twitch of his lips. He didn’t dare to turn back to Viktor, to look at him… He didn’t dare to move. He knew how this could play out, and probably would play out, and he had done this already once or twice, he didn’t remember how many times actually, but he knew it would be all too easy to lose him now, and also knew it would probably be for the best. So he held his breath and stared at the ground, trying to keep all the raging emotions inside, to give Viktor the space he deserved.

“I don’t care about that,” Viktor said after a minute, just when Yuuri felt like he couldn’t hold his tears in anymore. That sentence was so shocking though that a few tears rolled down Yuuri’s cheeks in response. “You hear me? I don’t care. It doesn’t matter how many centuries you have on me. What matters is that we are here, we are alive, and we’re together. And if that requires me to give my career up, then so be it. You did a lot already for us, now it’s my turn.”

Yuuri finally gasped for air. His tears tumbled over and fell down his face, while he sobbed, his breath hitching and his shoulders shaking. He felt Viktor wrap his arms around him and pull him close, while Makkachin whined and rubbed his head against Yuuri’s thigh. Yuuri hugged Viktor back, crushing his body to his, and sobbed into the lapel of Viktor’s coat.

“I’m s-sorry,” Yuuri mumbled after a solid minute of crying. He felt like a wrung out cloth.

“There is nothing to apologize for,” Viktor replied softly, while he pressed featherlight kisses on Yuuri’s shoulder. He pulled some tissues out of his pocket for Yuuri to blow his nose and wipe away the tears. When he felt like he was presentable, he looked up at Viktor, who was smiling at him sweetly. “I meant what I said. I consciously decided to come here, because you and the thing we have is worth the hassle. It’ll be fine, I promise.”

Yuuri nodded and captured Viktor’s lips with a quick kiss. He could feel him smile a little wider, and that just made Yuuri squeeze Viktor’s body even tighter.

“Okay, can we go though?” Yuuri said once they broke apart. “I’m freezing.”

Viktor laughed out loud, letting his head fall back as he shook with amusement. He then grabbed Yuuri’s hand, and started marching forward, pulling Yuuri with him.

“You Japanese people have no idea about winter,” he grumbled while still smiling. “In Russia, this is good spring weather.”

Yuuri smiled, and jabbed his elbow into Viktor’s side.

“Get off that high horse, Nikiforov,” he teased, grinning at Viktor. Viktor giggled, and pretended to rub at the pain in his side.

“Get on my level, Katsuki,” Viktor retorted, bumping his shoulder into Yuuri’s. Yuuri just laughed at that.

It didn’t take them too long to reach the inn, and when they did, Yuuri was surprised to see that the whole inn, staff and regulars, weren’t standing at the door to see what was going on. It was only just his mother and Minako, though they did look worried out of their minds. When Yuuri and Viktor opened the main gate and stepped inside with Makkachin, Yuuri’s mother let out a gasping breath. She ran up to them, and hugged them, which surprised them both.

“What is going on!” she asked them, exclaiming loudly. “Minako-senpai said Viktor Nikiforov was here, and now you walk in like long time lovers!”

Yuuri had to think quick. He never thought this moment would arrive, much less this way. He glanced at Viktor, silently trying to communicate that he had this; from Viktor’s responding nod, he guessed the message went through. He took a deep breath.

“It’s alright, Mum, Minako-sensei,” he said, addressing both women, and he also guessed he was talking to the whole inn, probably eavesdropping behind the sliding doors. “It’s… well, it’s all a bit sudden. Viktor and I have been having this… thing for a while now, but I didn’t really know how to define it, so I didn’t say anything. Viktor decided to just jump the gun and come here without telling me first,” at that, he looked at Viktor, who smiled and shrugged, “but what can we do, he’s now here and he’ll be staying here.”

“So that means you two are a couple?”

“In the middle of his season?!”

The two questions came at the same second, the first from his mother, while the second was asked by Minako-sensei. Yuuri looked back and forth between the two, trying to figure out who to answer first, so he decided he would answer the one he actually could.

“Yeah… Yes, Mum, we are a couple, I guess, we have been for a while,” he replied. His response made his mother’s face light up with a brilliant smile. “We just didn’t really know how to call it, but well… here it is.”

Yuuri’s mother first cupped Yuuri’s face in her hands and placed a sweet kiss on his cheek, which she then repeated with Viktor, only with an additional “Welcome to the family, darling.” slipped in there. Both of them smiled down at her and hugged her again. While that, Yuuri looked at Viktor, who knew it was his time to answer.

“As for the other question… Yes, in the middle of the season,” he said. “I think I can afford to do what I want, not to mention I love the element of surprise, right? What’s more surprising than packing up and moving to Japan? Besides,” he smiled and laughed, “I had some issues with young Katsuki here that I had to talk through, and I thought the best way to do that was face to face.”

Minako looked at him intently for a whole minute long, and then nodded.

“You know what you’re doing,” she said, though it sounded more like a question than a statement.

“Yes, I do,” Viktor replied, keeping up the eye contact. Yuuri could only imagine how it felt like when Viktor looked that closely at someone. It sent a shiver down his spine, and he didn’t know whether he was frightened or excited about the thought of being stared at by Viktor.

Minako sighed and shrugged.

“Okay then,” she said. “I hope you really do know what you’re doing. Just don’t screw him over,” she added, pointing at Yuuri with her chin. That made Yuuri blush a little.

“Minako-sensei, come on…” he mumbled, shaking his head. Viktor just chuckled, and squeezed Yuuri’s hand that he did not let go of the whole time.

“That would be the last thing on my mind,” Viktor replied, smiling at Minako. He then turned to Yuuri’s mother to formally introduce himself, which Yuuri’s mother seemed to appreciate a whole lot. She smiled up at Viktor, and took his elbow in her hands to lead him inside. Yuuri stayed behind, and watched them go in, his mother chatting with Viktor animatedly, while Makkachin shook himself to get the snow off his body. Minako watched them as well, at least until the door closed, when she promptly turned back towards Yuuri.

“Okay, for real, what’s going on?” she asked. Yuuri guessed she didn’t buy their story like his mother did, and he was prepared for her questioning him… but he still didn’t know how to explain. He sighed, and then looked into her eyes, trying to look as intensely as Viktor just did.

“Let’s stick to the story I told you and that should be enough,” he said. He know how horribly condescending that sounded, but he literally had no other story to cover the reality up with. “It’d be hard, or even impossible to explain, so for the benefit of both of us, I will not do that. It is true that Viktor and I love each other, and he did make a rash decision without telling me. That is everything that you need to know.”

Minako-sensei looked at him confused. She shook her head once, twice, and then just chuckled.

“When did you get so old?” she mumbled, and looked up at him smiling. “Keeping secrets from your teacher? Not nice.”

Yuuri smiled at her as well.

“I have been keeping secrets since I turned twelve, sensei, there is really nothing to it,” he said, and walked up to her. He linked their arms together and drew her towards the inn, hoping that the promise of warmth, good food, and some alcohol can turn her attention elsewhere, and it seemed to do the job. She stepped with him willingly, still smiling. “Like, remember the time you thought the wind knocked your favorite vase over?”

“Wait that was you?!” Minako replied shouting. Yuuri just laughed out loud. Disaster averted.

\---

Viktor got the biggest tatami room available in the house. Mari looked at him for long minutes, then nodded once and went on her way. Yuuri didn’t know what that look meant, but he guessed she approved of him. While Minako and he were talking outside, Viktor and Yuuri’s mother rubbed Makkachin all over, so now he could run all around the house. He was yipping happily and licking the faces of the regulars sitting around. Some people laughed, while others pushed him away: luckily Makkachin was smart enough not to push too hard in those cases.

“Sweetheart, want to take Viktor for a nice hot bath?” Yuuri’s mother asked, looking meaningfully at her son. It took Yuuri a whole minute to understand what his mother was alluding to, and when he finally got it, his face lit up with a blush. He mumbled something about how parents shouldn’t embarrass their child in front of others. Viktor just looked at him, amused by the situation.

Yuuri decided using the private family bath would be the best. It wasn’t as fancy as the pools for public or private use, but in Yuuri’s opinion it was actually better than any other. A huge Japanese maple hung over the pool, sprinkling the water with beautiful red leaves.

For some reason, Yuuri felt both self conscious and completely at ease while Viktor and he stripped naked. He didn’t train as hard as before, so the body he occupied grew a tiny tummy, which posed an uncomfortable contrast to Viktor’s ridiculously toned and lean body. Yuuri felt slightly embarrassed, and made a feeble attempt at hiding his stomach with his towel, but Viktor reached out and brushed his hand away.

“Don’t,” he bit out, looking at Yuuri with eyes swimming with passion. “You are perfect the way you are. Do not hide from me.”

Yuuri was astonished to hear that. Of course, they said that a lot to each other over the centuries, but he definitely didn’t hear that said about him in this lifetime. He smiled, feeling a little embarrassed; still, he lowered his hands as asked.

They quietly went through the process of showering before entering the bath itself, and just as Yuuri was about to slide the door open, he heard Viktor laugh. He turned back questioningly, and saw Viktor smiling.

“It’s nothing,” Viktor reassured him. “I’m just laughing at how standards change. Remember when Michelangelo painted that beautiful piece of you? You definitely had a tummy then, and he loved it.”

“Ah, Caravaggio,” Yuuri realized then, and he laughed as well. “ Yeah, I remember. How times change!”

“They sure do,” Viktor said, and followed Yuuri into the pool. When they sat down on the stone stool and relaxed back against the side of the pool, Viktor reached out to grab Yuuri’s hand under the water, and as Yuuri watched the red leaves balance delicately on top of the surface and felt Viktor’s hand in his, he was suddenly  _ staring into a goblet of blood red wine. _

_ He held it as carefully as he could, making sure he dropped none of the liquid on the soft white sheet draped over his naked body. The wine leaves and grapes perched artistically on the top of his curls, threatening to fall off but not quite. If anything, they tickled his scalp. _

_ He looked up from his cup to glance mysteriously at the man standing behind a canvas, dotting it with vibrant paint. Angelo, as they called him, was so completely focused in his task he doubted the painter even saw him when he looked up. In any case, he was meticulously explained what was expected of him, so he really didn’t need any further instructions. _

_ Behind Angelo stood his beautiful aide, his secret lover, his everything, Lodovico, or Vico as he loved to call him. He insisted to be present for the process, even though he told him that it’d be boring. _

_ “I do not care, Iacomo,” he said then, lying naked next to him. The warm wind blew the soft curtains over them, brushing their sweat-chilled bodies, caressing their skin. “I do not trust il maestro one bit. You’re desirable as the sweetest cherry.” _

_ That thought still made him blush, which was just as great since he had to have a warm, drunk glow to his skin. Vico declared such things often, as was the nature of their relationship: since they have been lovers and soulmates, remembering all their pasts, their love ran deep, so deep it could hold up such passionate exclamations. Even though he knew maestro Caravaggio would never do such a thing, especially not while he was creating, and he even repeatedly said as much to Vico, he still insisted. _

_ If he wanted to be honest, that was too flattering to pass up. So in the end, he didn’t say much about the matter, and just allowed Vico to tag along. He sat a bit further away from the scene, quietly picking on some grapes that Angelo said weren’t up to standard. _

_ The day slowly idled by. He really wished he could eat, or at least move, but he knew better than to disturb Angelo during his work. He occasionally glanced up at Vico, and was completely not surprised to find him slouched back in the chair he occupied, quietly snoring. Their passionate lovemaking dragged onto the vee hours of the morning when any respectable young man would just be returning from a night of drinking, and Angelo wanted an early start at the morning, so they couldn’t sleep much. He expected Vico to drop off soon after the session started, but he valiantly held on for hours on end. That was now over though. _

_ Another twenty minutes rolled by, when Angelo held his brush down on his palette, and stood back a step to take a look at what he had. He held his breath in, hoping that Angelo liked the painting enough not to throw it out the window and insist on starting over. After an anxious minute, Angelo nodded, and threw his brush into the pot of water next to him. _

_ “Good enough,” he said. “I shall work on this separately from now on. Your services were satisfactory, Iacomo. I left your payment with my servant, leave whenever is convenient.” With that, Caravaggio nodded towards him, and left the room, calling for the servants to put his equipment away and to serve him lunch. He usually didn’t eat with patrons for some reason, so he didn’t mind the distant behaviour. _

_ Once the servants left, Vico immediately perked up. He stood up, marched across the room, and sat down next to Iacomo, casually throwing his leg over his. _

_ “I thought he’d never be done,” he said, taking the cup out of his hands and drinking a huge mouthful of the red wine. He moaned appreciatively as the tangy taste bloomed over his tongue. “At least he’s paying good.” _

_ Iacomo nodded in agreement while he went about pulling all the foodstuff out of his curls that stuck together a little from the sweet juices of the grape. _

_ “He is also a great painter,” Iacomo added, while he threw the leaves on the table. “I’m sure his name will be remembered.” _

_ It was Vico’s time to mumble an agreement. Iacomo continued to rid his body of the foliage draped across him, and for a minute, he cursed the warm sunlight that hit them and made everything just a bit too sticky. Behind him, he herd Vico gasp. He turned around questioningly, only to see Vico’s beautiful bright eyes ablaze with passion. Vico put the cup down and safely away from them, and then reached forward to draw Iacomo down next to him. _

_ “Hi,” Iacomo said, giggling a little. He turned more towards Vico and smiled at him. “Anything I can help you with?” _

_ “You look divine,” Vico mumbled, stumbling over the words. “You look absolutely breathtaking. My words are inadequate to describe how gorgeous you look right now. My own Bacchus.” _

_ Iacomo didn’t know what to say. It wasn’t rare for Vico to express his utter adoration, just like Iacomo loved to tell him his feelings as well, but this felt so much more intense than anything before. He felt the emotions gripping his heart and holding it so tight he gasped for breath at the sensation. He reached his hand out and grabbed Vico’s, just to hold it up to his lips and press a soft kiss against his knuckles. _

_ “You are the best thing that has ever happened, and will ever happen to me,” Iacomo said, staring into Vico’s eyes, hoping he could convey even just a fraction of what he felt for this man. Vico smiled at him, and leaned close to Iacomo for a sweet, wine-tinged kiss. _

_ Iacomo closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, he  _ stared at the the leaves still swimming on top of the water’s surface. He blinked, and then blinked again, and looked up at Viktor, who looked back at him with wonder in his eyes.

“Did you…?” he asked Viktor, and he nodded.

“Yes, I saw it too,” he replied, and Yuuri smiled widely.

“Wow,” he breathed, leaning into Viktor, touching their shoulders. “That… I don’t think that happened before.”

“Yeah, I’m not sure we ever experienced that before,” Viktor agreed, squeezing Yuuri’s hand he still held in his. “But I’m glad this happened. It must mean we are on the right path?”

“Yeah, probably,” Yuuri said, reaching out to pluck a leaf out from the water. He rolled it around between his fingertips, mesmerised by the vivid red. “It was the color that reminded me of the wine,” he added. Viktor made a sound of agreement, and reached up with his unoccupied hand to push his sweaty hair back.

“It tasted amazing, too,” he noted. That made Yuuri laugh.

They sat in the water for a while, soaking up the warmth of the water, quietly reveling in the state of being together in such a relaxed state. Yuuri felt calm for the first time in a long while. His mind was clear of worry or negativity, and as he sat there, feeling the water massaging the ache out of his muscles that he didn’t even know was there, he felt at peace. He sighed deeply, appreciating this second so much. Viktor slid down until his head could comfortably rest on Yuuri’s shoulder, and he just kept it there. The weight of his head was not at all uncomfortable for Yuuri, in fact, he loved it just so.

“Do you remember what happened?” Viktor asked after a while, making Yuuri confusedly frown. What kind of question was that?

“Viktor, I remember everything,” he said, laughing a little. “Just tell me what you want me to retell, and I can.” That made Viktor chuckle, and turn his face more into Yuuri’s neck as he shook with laughter.

“Yeah, figured as much,” he said once he calmed down a little, and then he sighed. “No… I mean… Do you remember what happened that made us separate?”

That was suddenly a completely different question. Yuuri’s mind stopped functioning for a second, and then it restarted with panic flashing through his brain. He really didn’t want to talk about it; in fact, he hoped against hope Viktor didn’t remember any of their arguments, even if he knew he would, because he always did.

“Well,” he began talking, while trying to swallow the lump that was starting to form in his throat, “we… It was me, really. I thought it wasn’t fair you never got a chance to simply live your life, you were always led to me by… well, by Fate, or whatever that is controlling our lives. I told you to forget about me, and go live your life, time and again I told you that, and at first it didn’t work… But after a while, you learned your lesson.”

Viktor sat up and pulled away from Yuuri a little, and if he wanted to be honest, that felt painful and he felt the missing weight of Viktor’s head from his shoulder acutely. Yuuri simply sat up a little taller, and just looked at Viktor, without a hint of shame at what he said. Viktor frowned at him, and shook his head.

“What about your choice though?” he asked. “Where do your wants come into this?”

“That doesn’t matter,” Yuuri replied, looking away. Viktor followed his statement immediately.

“Of course it matters!” he said loudly, making Yuuri look back at him. “If I get to choose whether I act upon the connection, then so do you! Do you mean to tell me it doesn’t matter that you might want to keep that connection alive, because me having the right to say no is more important than that?”

“That’s exactly what I’m saying,” Yuuri said without blinking, which made Viktor even more flustered. He huffed out in anger and crossed his arms in front of him.

“Okay, that’s bullshit, and I’ll tell you why it’s that,” he said, sounding furious with Yuuri, who just sighed. This was so familiar already, and he felt himself slump into this slow, sluggish feeling where he just shut his feelings down, not even daring to think closely on them. Viktor didn’t seem to notice that, or if he did, he just passed by that without commenting on it. “One, you are as much of a ‘victim’ here as I am, though I would argue with being a victim when this is the best thing that has ever happened to me.” He shook his head, looking like he couldn’t believe how Yuuri could even think that at all. “Two, I always had a choice. I could walk away if I wanted to, but guess what, I never did, because though this love was fated, I’m just as much in it every time. You are a gorgeous creation, and I love everything about you, even the things that annoy me.”

“How can you say that though?” Yuuri asked, flinching internally for asking anything at all. He didn’t actually mean to do that. “You barely know me, me, Katsuki Yuuri. You might know the soul that’s living inside, but not the body that came with it. How can you say you love everything about me?”

“That’s simple,” Viktor replied, looking into Yuuri’s eyes. “Because of the soul that’s in it. My soul adores yours, naturally anything that comes with it goes on that list of things.”

Yuuri blinked at Viktor, and then blinked again.

“Okay, and three,” Viktor continued, riding on the fact that Yuuri was actually paying attention, “not then, and not now, did I say I came here without wanting to. I consented to this connection, back then and now, so to say. Whatever happened that changed my life and shaped it so you could fit in it, or the other way around, I don’t see as a huge loss, I see as a necessary step we had to take in order to fulfill our utmost potential.” He turned his head away, looking at the leaves, even picking one up to examine it more closely. “Just trust me on this, Yuuri… Julien...  Iacomo. I make informed decisions, ultimately in order to be with you. I don’t make rash ones, or give my life up to be with you, on the contrary. I gave being up with you in order to test what this life had for me, and honestly, nothing came close to holding your hands and kissing you.” He laughed at that, and looked at Yuuri, trying to make something of his expression.

There were so many things inside Yuuri he didn’t know whether they all had space on his face at all. He felt guilt and shame for assuming Viktor couldn’t make his own decisions; anger for thinking that he had the right to make those calls for him; sadness over all the arguments they had on this topic before, even though the explanation seemed to be so obvious. Happy and proud at how well Viktor pulled all his arguments together, and really, all of them made sense. Instead of trying to express it all, his body decided to do it for him: he started to cry.

Viktor scrambled to try and calm him down, worriedly fussing over Yuuri, who just cried harder and harder. He couldn’t even choke out that these were happy tears, he was crying so hard. When he really didn’t know what to do, Viktor simply hugged Yuuri’s shaking body close to his and rubbed soothing circles on his back, trying to calm him down. It took several minutes for Yuuri to stop sobbing, and even longer than that to completely calm down.

“Everything okay?” Viktor asked after Yuuri sat back a little and splashed water in his face to wash the tears off his cheeks. Yuuri nodded.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” he replied, and then smiled a little. “I couldn’t even say they were happy tears.”

“Happy tears?” Victor said, sounding surprised.

“Yeah,” Yuuri mumbled. “I… I never actually looked at it this way before. All these centuries behind me, and I never actually considered this. I always thought I was doing you a favor, because you weren’t in the right state of mind to make your own decisions, but evidently you always have been. I’m… grateful you opened my eyes to this. I feel like I should apologize, but… I guess it wouldn’t mean much now.”

Viktor laughed, and the joy returned into his eyes, for which Yuuri was extremely grateful. “You can apologize all you want, they have been accepted centuries ago. It’s really fine, Yuuri. I understand why you did what you did, I’m just saying, it’s okay, you can stop.”

“Okay,” Yuuri said, nodding. “Thank you.”

“Of course.”

They spent a few more minutes in the water, soaking up the warmth for a while longer. When they decided to stand up and climb out, Yuuri felt like he was calm for the first time in… he didn’t even know how long it has been. He felt his mind quiet and peaceful, and his heart sang praises of how light it felt. Yuuri smiled, and that smile stuck on his face for the whole time they toweled the water off their bodies and dressed in soft yukatas. Viktor looked at him questioningly.

“Everything alright?” he asked, and Yuuri just nodded, still smiling.

“Yes, more than fine actually,” he replied. They pushed their feet into two pairs of slippers, and stepped out of the bathroom. He took a deep breath in, and when he looked around, he swore the world around them was more vibrant than it has ever been. He looked at Viktor, and saw that he was the most beautiful creature, and Yuuri felt completely overwhelmed and so in love like how he felt the first time when they met. He stepped up to Viktor, and hugged him. Viktor hugged him back, and that’s all Yuuri needed.

They went and got some dinner. His father made them Yuuri’s favorite dish, Katsudon, and Viktor loved it so much he ate two servings of it right off the bat. Yuuri laughed as he watched Viktor consuming the huge bowls of food with gusto, giving out sounds of contentment as he ate. When he was full, he thanked Yuuri’s father for the meal, and then leaned back to lie down on the tatami floor, massaging his huge stomach full of food.

“You liked that?” Yuuri asked, still smiling. He didn’t eat nearly as much as Viktor did, but he liked the dish just as well. When Viktor nodded and smiled sleepily, Yuuri laughed and stood up. “Okay, what do you think of going to bed?”

“That sounds like an excellent idea,” Viktor mumbled, and rolled over to stand up. Yuuri ended up helping him with that, which gave way to even more laughter. They stumbled off to Viktor’s room, where the ever-mindful Mari prepared a king sized futon for them to sleep on. Yuuri drew the blackout curtains in while Viktor locked the door. They quickly got in underneath the heavy top blanket and then cuddled up to each other. Yuuri sighed happily and burrowed his head into Viktor’s neck. He inhaled his scent, and exhaled loudly, which made Viktor chuckle.

“Feeling alright?” he asked Yuuri, who moaned and snuggled even closer to Viktor.

“Of course I do,” Yuuri replied, mumbling against Viktor’s skin. “I’m full of food, content, snuggling in a warm bed with my soulmate after a ridiculous rollercoaster of a day. I don’t think I’ve been this happy for the past few decades.”

Viktor made a sound of agreement, but didn’t add anything more to that. They laid in bed, cuddling, drawing slow and soft patterns on each other’s backs. Yuuri felt so calm he drifted in and out of sleep, so it took him a few seconds till he actually heard Viktor calling his name.

“Hmm?” he mumbled, opening his eyes and trying to focus on Viktor, which wasn’t the easiest thing to do in the dark. He saw no negative emotions on Viktor’s face though, minus the worry. What did he have to worry about? Yuuri frowned. “What’s up?”

“I have a question for you, and I don’t know how you’ll respond,” Viktor said, looking away. That statement made Yuuri sit up and look down at Viktor with confusion.

“I don’t know what it is, but tell me,” he demanded. Viktor fumbled with the blanket for a second, and then sat up as well, still avoiding Yuuri’s eyes.

“So, I was thinking,” Viktor said. “I’m pretty sure the word is out now, right? So we will have to come forward one way or another, and say that we date or something.” Viktor frowned at that wording and rolled his eyes. Yuuri smiled at his reaction. He felt the same way: saying that they dated didn’t even begin to cover what all this was. “So yeah… And I thought, how else would we do that than by skating? We are both skaters. And… I have this gala coming up at the end of November in Moscow where I’m supposed to perform. And… I thought. What if we both go? And do a pair program? That would be pretty straightforward of us, no?”

Okay, that was actually something Yuuri didn’t know how to respond to.

“Uh…” he began, but he couldn’t continue, so he closed his mouth and stared a little. Viktor nervously shifted around, waiting for what Yuuri would say. “Well, I’m… I don’t know. Honestly, I love the idea–”

As he said it, Viktor looked up, smiling widely.

“Okay, okay,” Yuuri continued, laughing. The atmosphere eased up immediately, and Viktor turned more towards him, looking excited. “I love the idea, right. I’m just wondering… It’s October already. Will we be able to practice a completely new program so it’s presentable in time?”

When Yuuri looked into Viktor’s eyes once he said that sentence, he saw that a deep fire flared up inside Viktor’s eyes. He looked as determined as before every single performance. Yuuri felt breathless witnessing it.

“If I say we can do it, we will,” Viktor said, his voice resonating through every cell in Yuuri’s body, sending a nearly self-conceited confidence through his soul. “I am a five-times World Champion. I have countless medals and awards. And you’re my soulmate. You cannot be anything but perfection itself. We need only a month, and we will make it work.”

Yuuri felt himself fired up by everything Viktor said. Suddenly, at that moment, he knew they could do it. He knew a month would be enough, and he knew they would perform marvellously, telling the whole world through their dance how much in love they were. He smiled widely at Viktor, and nodded.

“Let’s do it then.”

\---

The next day, they went to the Ice Castle, to discuss some arrangements with the management in terms of renting the ice surface for the whole month. It would be expensive they both knew, but apparently Viktor had a lot of money, and though Yuuri protested him spending a single penny on this, Viktor simply brushed his worry away saying it was a necessary expense.

At the rink they met Yuuko. Yuuri still didn’t know how to feel about her: she, or rather her children, were the causes of the worst and best rollercoaster of Yuuri’s life. He felt like he should be angry at her, even though it wasn’t exactly her fault the triplets uploaded the video, but in general, he realized he was just… indifferent. Though he still loved her, but more as a distant relative, not the way he loved her before. Yuuko seemed to feel the change in affection as well, as she communicated with them in a rather reserved way. She led them to the conference room where her husband Takeshi was waiting for them.

“I don’t believe we have met yet,” he said when he saw Viktor, and extended his right hand. “Nishigori Takeshi, co-manager of the rink. Nice to meet you.”

“The pleasure is mine,” Viktor replied amicably, shaking Takeshi’s hand. “Viktor Nikiforov, this guy’s,” and he nodded his head towards Yuuri, “boyfriend.”

That make Takeshi laugh with booming laughter, filling the room with the sound. Yuuko’s face softened up a bit, and she smiled as well.

“That’s some news now isn’t it!” Takeshi said, and then waved towards the chairs in front of the manager’s desk. “Please, sit down, we have much to discuss.”

They sat down, and Yuuko spread out their budget in front of them. She understood their request, but she was a bit worried whether she could comply or not.

“You see, our main income source is the public skating sessions we have. It’s still not a lot, it definitely could be more, especially if we were to start the rink development we had in the works for a while now,” Yuuko explained, pointing at a piece of paper that detailed the budget of the improvement, with a pretty high total price at the bottom. “So… You asking us to completely close the rink down for a whole month means our main income goes away, which will affect not just the development process, but the general operation of the rink as well.” Yuuko looked up, worry etching lines on her beautiful face. “I know you said you had the money to rent the place out, but I’m going to be honest, I don’t quite believe that. I’m worried this might end up ruining the rink altogether. We barely have enough to survive from month to month, we can’t afford a whole month of nothing.”

Viktor nodded understandingly, and then asked Yuuko to nevertheless make calculations of how much a rental period would cost for the month, plus a little extra, of course, for their generosity. Yuuko frowned, but still complied, typing away on a calculator for a while, and then turned the calculator towards them. The price was high, that was true, but Yuuri wasn’t surprised by that. An ice rink wasn’t a cheap establishment at all.

Viktor nodded again, and then reached into his inside pocket. When he pulled his hand out, he had a huge stack of cash in it, so much that it made everyone else’s jaw drop. He started counting the money, flipping through the paper quickly, and when he reached the amount needed, he put it down onto the desk. He then flipped through the remaining money and after a certain point, stopped again. He put that amount down on the table, too.

“So, the stack here,” he said, putting his hands over the first stack, “covers the expenses of the whole month, from ice resurfacing to utility bills. This second one,” he continued, moving his hand over to the next one, “is our generous contribution to the betterment of this establishment.” He leaned back, flipped the rest of the notes together, and put it away. He then crossed his arms over his chest, and looked entirely too happy with himself. “Could you please draw up a contract for it, too, for transparency’s sake?”

Once Yuuko came out of the state of shock this caused, she nodded, and turned the computer on. She quickly typed away in a Word document, her hand shaking on the keyboard. Takeshi just sat back on his chair, staring at Viktor in wonder.

“Are you with the Russian mafia or something?” he asked, and Viktor laughed wholeheartedly.

“No, not at all,” he replied. “Despite how it looks, I don’t spend much from the prize money I get. I have a lot, and I decided, what would be a better way to spend it than spending it on my boyfriend? So there we have it.”

Meanwhile, Yuuko finished the contract, and printed two copies of it that they all signed. They all stood up, and shook hands.

“Thank you for your contribution,” Yuuko said sincerely. “We appreciate every single penny. We’ll make arrangements to close the facility down to the public, and you’ll be able to start working as soon as tomorrow, if that’s alright with you.”

“That’s perfectly fine, thank you,” Viktor replied, smiling brightly at Yuuko. When he attempted to draw his hand back, Yuuko held on for a second.

“And don’t hurt him, alright?” she added, clearly speaking about Yuuri. Yuuri puffed his cheeks up, ready to tell her not to push her nose into his life any more than she already did, but Viktor just laughed at her request.

“I would never, not for anything,” he replied, sounding sincere, and Yuuko nodded, accepting his answer.

\---

Before Yuuri could realize, it was already the next day. He was standing nervously at the edge of the ice, staring at Viktor, who was already out there, gracefully gliding on the perfectly smooth surface. Takeshi told them he made sure the ice was in perfect condition for them to use, which was nice to hear… but still, Yuuri felt nervous. He gripped the boards until he could feel his knuckles popping. Viktor looked over, expecting him to already be out on the ice, and when he saw he wasn’t, he frowned and skated over.

“Hey, everything alright?” he asked Yuuri, who looked everywhere but at Viktor. He shrugged and just mumbled something, so Viktor reached out with his hand to turn Yuuri’s head towards him, and looked into his eyes. Yuuri could only stand it for a few seconds and then he sighed, closing his eyes.

“It’s just a bit hard,” he admitted. “I had some pretty miserable disappointments on ice, not to mention I’m out of shape… I’m not entirely convinced we can do this.”

Instead of saying anything to that, Viktor just picked his phone up from the docking station next to them, and after opening YouTube, he turned the screen towards Yuuri so he could see the video of his skating playing.

“Was this you only a few days ago?” Viktor asked, and his tone made Yuuri look away from the screen, flushed with embarrassment. He nodded. “Well then, there we go. You are more than capable. Come on out, I’m here to help.” With that, Viktor docked his phone again, and then reached out for Yuuri’s hand, to help him out on the ice.

Yuuri found that the minute he was on the ice with Viktor, all his inferior thoughts were gone. His mind got blissfully quiet while he took his first shaky steps, holding Viktor’s hand. Soon he was able to let go of his hand and just skate on his own, slowly gaining confidence. He felt incredible out there. He didn’t even know when the last time was, if there were any that is, when he felt so free while skating. He laughed loudly, and heard Viktor join in.

“Everything okay?” Viktor asked again, this time the tint of worry completely gone from his voice. Yuuri turned towards him, with an enormous grin on his face.

“More than okay,” he replied, making Viktor smile at him.

“Good, because we gotta get down to business,” Viktor said semi-seriously, which only made Yuuri laugh again.

And so they started practicing.

The program Viktor had in mind wasn’t too complicated, especially since Yuuri already learnt his Stammi Vicino program. Viktor basically took that choreography and adapted it to accommodate a pair skate. The main elements like the jumps and major spins were still there, only with a few more step sequences and bridging elements that brought the program together and made it suitable for a couple.

As Viktor explained the elements and they started to practice it, it dawned on Yuuri how perfectly the program described their love. The program started out with Viktor alone on the ice, looking lost and skating around to the melody, when suddenly, Yuuri enters the picture. Lights come on, the music changes to a duet, and that’s how they go on. As Yuuri danced, snaking his body around Viktor’s, he couldn’t help but feel the bittersweet pain of their age-old love. He felt the way Viktor changed the program around would be perfect to create an image of their feelings for eachother, even if nobody would quite understand the depth it went.

They usually had no company during practice. The triplets were banned from entering the building for the duration of their stay, which Yuuri was thankful for. At one time, Viktor had a FaceTime call from the Russian Punk Yuri Plisetsky, who screamed at the screen about a promise Viktor made. From Viktor’s face, it was quite obvious he forgot: he rubbed at the back of his neck while he apologized to Plisetsky. The kid seemingly didn’t expect that at all as he looked completely taken aback by Viktor’s reaction. He mumbled something about it being okay, and that he had a few more months to do good on his promise anyway. Viktor promised he would do so.

The only semi-regular person at their practices was Yuuko. Since she had barely anything to do at her job as a manager, she had all the time to kick back and relax. She visited their practices as often as she could, if only just to marvel at their performance. Strangely, it was Yuuri who was unnerved by her presence; Viktor was happy to see her and usually put up a show for her.

“You know, it’s actually a bit strange to see Yuuri so relaxed with someone,” she said one day when they were practicing lifts. Though Yuuri knew that to be true as in this life, he wasn’t that keen on human touch, his perspective was a little biased since it  _ was  _ his soulmate after all. Viktor just looked at Yuuko questioningly, silently urging her to continue talking, which she did. “I mean… he was always a loner as a kid. I never thought he’d ever have a significant other, let alone do a program with said significant other.”

Yuuri laughed awkwardly and tried to diffuse the situation by grabbing some tissues to blow his nose. Viktor on the other hand, was very interested.

“So he was a lonely kid?” he asked, stopping next to Yuuko. Yuuri choked on his saliva and decided he didn’t need to listen really, so he skated away coughing, knowing full well that sound travels well on ice. Still.

“Yeah, he never had many friends,” Yuuko replied with a chatty tone. “He was always at this rink, doing circles one after the other until he was chased off the ice and sent home. He never really knew how to connect with others.”

Viktor hummed while he looked at a very flustered Yuuri, who tried his level best not to show he heard every single world. Viktor scratched his chin and brushed his lips with his fingertips, deep in thought.

“Thank you,” he finally said to Yuuko, who just smiled at him in return.

“Bring the best out of him,” she added. “It’s there, only he doesn’t know where.”

Viktor nodded, and then pushed away from the boards. They had a program to practice.

Later that evening, Viktor brought the topic of childhood up again while they were having their nightly soak in the hot spring tub.

“So, a lonely child?” Viktor asked casually as he leaned back on his elbows. Yuuri blushed, as if that were even possible with the hot flush on his face, and mumbled something about life and the cards you're dealt with. Viktor just smiled at that reaction. “You know, I was a loner, too,” he said, which made Yuuri turn towards him with a shocked expression.

“Well, that’s not what I expected to hear,” he admitted, scratching his head. Viktor laughed in response.

“I suppose it sounds odd, yes,” he said, tilting his head up to look at the sky. Lost in thoughts, he continued, “I suppose I was never the favorite at places. I mean, the silver haired prodigy who’s always training? They thought I was a weird kid at school and bullied me, and they hated me at the rink and bullied me. I’m not sure I would have pulled through if it weren’t for my parents and Yakov.”

Yuuri stared at Viktor, completely taken aback by his confession. He slid up right next to him and hugged his body close, pressing a kiss against Viktor’s temple.

“I wish I were there,” he mumbled into Viktor’s skin, feeling the vibration of Viktor’s laughter on his lips.

“To be honest? I wish so too,” Viktor replied. “But that’s not how it was. I wish desperately I’d been there for you during your childhood as well, especially since you remembered and I didn’t… but that’s how life turned out, so, not much to do about that.”

Yuuri quietly agreed, but continued to cuddle Viktor, who lovingly accepted the comfort. They stayed in that position for minutes, when a thought came to Yuuri that made him tense up.

“What’s up?” Viktor asked when he felt Yuuri move away from him. Yuuri turned towards him with a huge grin on his face.

“I think I figured out why you didn’t remember us at first!” he exclaimed, making Viktor sit up straighter as well. “I mean, it makes sense sort of. I was born much later than you were in this timeline, right? Usually there isn’t that big of a difference between our ages, but this time there is. What if that affects the connection? Like I don’t know… your soul not knowing when to wake up so to say?”

“That would make sense,” Viktor replied, smiling at Yuuri. “How much is the difference actually?”

“Four years,” Yuuri said. “Okay, that makes sense to me.”

“Makes sense to me too,” Viktor mumbled and smiled, and then looked at Yuuri, who was smiling as well. “We might not be completely broken yet.” That earned a laugh from Yuuri.

“Yeah, completely sane here, thank you very much,” he said, rolling his eyes, which made Viktor laugh in turn.

Soon they climbed out of the water and went to sleep. Both knew they had a long day ahead the next morning, but as they got dressed, they felt more at peace than before.

—-

October flew by. Before they knew it, they were sitting on a flight to Sheremetyevo International Airport. It wasn’t the first flight Yuuri was on, but it was the first that held so much importance for him, so much so he found himself shaking in his seat as the plane rolled out to take off. Viktor grabbed his hand and drew it up to kiss his knuckles.

“Everything okay?” he asked. Yuuri nodded a yes.

“Just the nerves,” he replied. It didn’t seem to calm Viktor down one bit, but he didn’t push the matter. Instead he just held Yuuri’s hand throughout the flight, not letting go once.

The flight was smooth and the baggage claim didn’t take long either. They were soon in a taxi headed to the Petroff Palace Hotel, which was only 20 mins on foot from the venue that was the Megasport Sport Palace. Originally Viktor was booked into a Standard room, but after a quick phone call they could easily upgrade to a Superior room. The staff was discreet: nobody asked about the extra person staying with Mister Nikiforov. A valet escorted them to their room and after a few rubles of a tip, he bowed out. Yuuri opened the windows to the harsh cold winds, just so he could look out and see a tiny segment of Moscow from this gorgeous hotel.

“Liking the view?” Viktor asked, stepping behind Yuuri and hugging him, while he also placed his chin on top of Yuuri’s shoulder. Yuuri put his hands on Viktor’s and sighed.

“Yes, very much so,” he said, “though honestly, I’m more worried about tomorrow night than anything.”

Viktor could understand that. It hasn’t been that long ago, still, when Yuuri completely messed up his career, so being nervous about performing, not to mention when not even the organizing committee knows you’ll perform, is pretty understandable. Viktor wished he could see inside Yuuri’s head to figure out what would be the best way to help him. Instead he did the next best thing: he asked.

“So, what would you like to do today?” he asked Yuuri, who just shrugged.

“To be honest, nothing,” Yuuri replied. “I think going out to sightsee would make me even more nervous because I would be worried about someone recognizing me… so I guess the best would be staying in and just relaxing.”

“I’m fine with that if you are,” Viktor said, and Yuuri nodded in approval. “Okay, let’s do that then.”

They stayed in their room for the rest of the day, ordering room service and hitting up Netflix for something to watch. Viktor didn’t have any special preferences, and Yuuri seemed to be in the mood for some easy entertainment, so they watched a bunch of comedies and laughed until their bellies ached. After a while, Yuuri dropped off into a nap, so Viktor snuggled up to him and decided to nap as well. They drifted in and out of sleep for the whole evening, only getting up to have a bath and do their usual pre-event grooming, which meant an extensive routine for Viktor that was now also applied on Yuuri.

“I’ll have to head out for a bit tomorrow,” Viktor said while he brushed Yuuri’s hair. He was enjoying it so much he leaned into Viktor’s touch, closing his eyes.

“I guess for a practice, right?” Yuuri replied, sounding like he was about to fall asleep again. “You didn’t tell the organizers I’m joining, right?”

“No, I didn’t,” Viktor said. “They wouldn’t have approved of it, and I really wanted to make this work, so I just didn’t.”

Yuuri mumbled an agreement. They went on with their night and watched Netflix until they fell asleep.

The next morning, they ordered room service again, and had some wonderful poached eggs with toast for breakfast. At about ten, Viktor headed out for a practice. He gave Yuuri a sweet kiss on his lips before departing.

While he was gone, Yuuri made an attempt at checking the news. They made an agreement not to do that often as they both knew sometimes the press wrote absolute nonsense, but Yuuri was curious whether they caught on or not. He was happy to see that skating media was mostly preoccupied with Skate America drama (the men SP! What just happened there!), and the most they talked about concerning them were rumors. Yuuri closed the news tabs in his browser and decided to do his stretching routine while he was waiting.

The day practically flew by. Yuuri felt nervous and excited at the same time, so before he knew, it was time for them to leave for the arena. He honestly didn’t remember much of the day, but he was glad the wait would be over soon. The world will know, they will skate their magnificent program, and though Yuuri didn’t know what would come after, he knew one thing: he could do it all with Viktor at his side.

How they managed to get past security, Yuuri had no idea. He got some nondescript badge from Viktor, and simply escorted him inside, keeping his eyes to the ground the whole time. Nobody seemed to have noticed or recognized him, which drew a grateful sigh out of Yuuri once they reached Viktor’s changing room. He sat down heavily on a chair and massaged his chest for a bit, willing the tightness around his ribcage disappear. Viktor sat down next to him and took his hand in his.

“Are you okay?” he asked, looking concerned. Yuuri smiled and leaned over to press a reassuring kiss on Viktor’s mouth.

“Yeah, just a little stage fright,” he replied, shrugging. “Never did this before, so I’m a bit nervous.”

That made Viktor laugh quietly.

“Well, hopefully this will be the first and the last time you’ll do this,” he said. That made Yuuri feel a little less anxious, though it did bring his earlier thoughts up.

“I was thinking,” he started speaking, “what do you plan to do after this? I mean… go back to your season? Or?”

Viktor looked at Yuuri questioningly, but then he frowned and turned his head away, falling deep in thought. He hummed and didn’t reply for a while, though he did squeeze Yuuri’s hand to reassure him.

“Honestly, I have no idea,” he said after a while, looking at Yuuri again and shrugging. “I definitely did not think that far ahead in time. I think we’ll figure it out tomorrow. One thing’s for sure though, I’m not letting you go.”

“No, I’m not letting  _ you  _ go,” Yuuri replied immediately, which made Viktor chuckle. They leaned in towards each other to meet in a slow kiss.

“Should we start to get ready?” Viktor asked after their kiss ended. Yuuri nodded in agreement and sighed. The best, or the worst, was yet to come.

Things were quiet as they got ready. Yuuri felt like they were preparing themselves for battle. He put the costume on that Viktor got tailored for him: it was the same as his original costume, only in a different color. After a few alterations here and there, the dress fit Yuuri like a glove.

While they were sitting in front of the mirror that ran across one side of the room doing their hair, an idea came to Yuuri’s mind.

“Hey, how about this,” he began talking, which drew Viktor’s attention away from his own hair. “What if we begin to document our lives? The times we spend together I mean. It could help remembering easier, not to mention how lovely it would be to have something that’s all about us. We could hide our versions at places only we have access to, so the next time we awaken, we have something real to show for our past lives.”

Viktor smiled wider and wider as Yuui went on, and he nodded enthusiastically.

“Yes, that’s a great idea,” he said, turning back to his task of gelling his hair in a perfect wave. “I’m sure future me will appreciate something he can hold onto until we meet again.”

“So that’s one thing to do after this is done,” Yuuri said, smiling at Viktor, who laughed in return.

“Yeah, that’s true.”

With that though, the time for jokes was up. A subtle knock on Viktor’s door signalled that it was soon his time on the ice, which sent a nervous shiver down Yuuri’s spine. As if Viktor had felt that, he put his hand on Yuuri’s shoulder and squeezed it encouragingly.

“It’ll be fine,” he said, and Yuuri nodded. If he couldn’t believe himself, he would believe Viktor… and if he said it’d be fine, it has to be.

Viktor gave Yuuri a spare sweatshirt he could put on, so the costume wouldn’t be too obvious for others. Before they stepped out of the room, Viktor leaned out to look around, and when he didn’t see anyone nearby who could notice them, they simply walked out of the room, towards the rink. Yuuri kept walking behind Viktor, who did his best to shield him from other’s eyes, but surprisingly, nobody stopped them to ask who Yuuri was. They reached the rink, and stopped behind the curtain guarding the athletes’ walkway from the audience. Yuuri took the sweatshirt off, and as his face came uncovered, the curtain flipped open, temporarily blinding Yuuri in the process. He blinked, trying to chase the stars away, and when his eyes came into focus,  _ he saw a completely torn-up Paris. _

_ He was standing at a nearly completely demolished part of the city, his gun in his hand. There were no windows or doors, all have been broken in, yet he felt like there were people behind those doors and windows, watching his every step. He knew that to be untrue: the invasion was going swiftly and left no survivors. The French didn’t expect them to go around the Maginot Line, leaving the city nearly completely defenseless. It was just too easy. _

_ As he was coming into focus, he finally saw who was standing in front of him: a man wearing some unusually fanciful clothing. He was breathing hard, and his face was completely awestruck. _

_ He brought his gun up, the barrel pointing at the man’s chest. _

_ “Stop!” he shouted, though it was unnecessary since the man wasn’t moving. “Who are you?” _

_ “Don’t you remember?” the man asked, sounding surprised. “Julien… my love, it’s me!” _

_ “What do you mean—” he began speaking, but the words got stuck in his throat. His eyes welled up with tears and his mind was suddenly overflowing with images of so many events and places he never been to, he didn’t know what to make of it. One thing he was certain of was that the man who stood in front of him was extremely important to him, and that he loved him with everything he had. _

_ “My god, Victor,” he choked out. He slung the gun onto his back and ran towards the man, who ran towards him as well. They met in the middle and embraced, hugging each other while sobbing with relief. _

_ “I didn’t know if I’d ever see you,” the man mumbled, crying into his coat. He was getting snot all over his backpack strap, but he found himself not caring at all. Instead, he hugged him closer to his body, not wanting to ever let go. _

_ “How are you called in this lifetime?” he asked instead. _

_ “Still Victor… seems like it’s a popular name,” Victor replied, laughing shakily. “And you?” _

_ “I’m Uwe,” he replied. _

_ “Uwe,” Victor repeated, wonder hushing his voice. “I love you, Uwe.” _

_ “As I do you, Victor,” Uwe replied. Suddenly he heard gunshots, and they came from somewhere nearby. The sound sent chills down his spine. He couldn’t allow Victor to be hurt, he had to get them away. _

_ “Can we meet later here?” he asked, turning back to Victor quickly. Victor nodded, understanding the situation well enough to know this wasn’t a safe place for them to be. He grabbed Uwe’s lapel and drew him into a heated kiss, holding all sorts of promises for the future. _

_ Uwe kissed back with fervor, and then let go of Victor. He turned away from him, not daring to look back, in case he changed his mind seeing him, and just walked away, into the blinding light of the Sun, towards the gunshots. _

Yuuri panted heavily.

He was holding onto Viktor, and when he looked up, he saw in his eyes that Viktor has seen it all as well. Yuuri couldn’t help but to grab onto Viktor and hug him close, not believing that he was there.

“You saw it, right?” he asked, though it seemed unnecessary to ask. Viktor nodded, shaking a little in Yuuri’s arms. “What happened? You never showed up.”

“I got caught,” Viktor explained. “I never made it back there. You?”

“Shot a few hours later, nowhere near there,” Yuuri said, sighing. It felt like such a waste of a life, to die so violently, but that was in the past, and Yuuri hoped it would stay there. He leaned his head on Viktor’s shoulder. “I’m not sure I can perform like this.”

“No, Yuuri, it’s fine,” Viktor said, putting his hand beneath Yuuri’s chin to tilt it upwards. “We have to channel this into the performance that’s all. What would be more tragic than two lovers, torn apart by war? Especially since it’s true!”

Yuuri nodded, and then nodded again.

“Okay,” he mumbled, “okay, let’s do this.”

With his last act before Viktor had to step out from behind the curtain, he drew him into a kiss.

“Let’s blow them out of here,” he said, which made Viktor laugh.

“That’s more like it, Katsuki,” he replied. “See you on the ice.”

The performance itself felt like a dream for Yuuri. He watched Viktor dance the first segment of the program with reverence. Viktor never failed to make him marvel at the talent he possessed. When it was his cue to enter the scene, he marched out from behind the curtain, and before anyone could stop him, he skated out on the ice, right into the waiting arms of Viktor’s. They spun around gracefully, and went on with the choreography.

They crafted the steps carefully so it was obvious they followed Viktor’s Stammi Vicino performance, only shaped to their preference. Not a single sound could be heard from the audience as they performed. Yuuri lifted Viktor above his head effortlessly, and he could just see how bizarre it might have been to witness that. His favorite part was the step sequence: they snaked around each other gracefully, never taking their eyes off of each other. As the parted for a jump, Yuuri truly felt love pouring out of his heart and into every single movement. He gravitated back towards Viktor, lovingly caressing his face, then turning away again.

The song was drawing to a close, so they glided back to each other, and as the last notes rung out, they embraced. The second the music was finished, the audience broke out into a riot. Viktor looked up and into Yuuri’s eyes, and mouthed an “I love you” to him. He grinned and kissed Viktor in return.

Yuuri felt truly alive in that moment.

—-

Stardate 21315.2.

The spaceship floated towards them, navigating delicately next to the human space station. Lieutenant Nikiforov looked out the hatch, curiously examining the spaceship approaching. It was the property of an alien race they haven’t made contact with before, so it was especially exciting for him to be part of the welcoming crew.

Secretly he also hoped He would be there as well, but that was just a distant hope, so unrealistic he didn’t even want to entertain the thought.

“Lieutenant, focus,” his commander said, making him snap back into attention. He tilted his head down, trying to hide his shame, but of course, that didn’t work. “It is fine to be excited, but we have to be on our guard.”

“Yes, Sir,” he replied.

The spaceship docked, and once the gravitation of the vehicle was stabilized, the hatches opened, revealing a human-like group of entities with bright blue eyes and shimmering skin. For that attribute, they were commonly referred to as Shimmers, though it wasn’t certain yet what they called themselves in their native language.

“Greetings!” the commander said, stepping forward to greet the newcomers. Thanks to the common tongue, it was easy to communicate, even if the two races normally didn’t share languages. “The human race welcomes you.”

He peeked out from behind the commander, and his eyes found a pair of bright blue ones. He looked the alien all over, and when he saw the age-old papers in his hands, yellowed with time, realization hit him.

“Oh,” he gasped. The alien’s face lit up with a brilliant smile.

“There you are,” he said, his voice ringing out like some beautiful music. “I have been looking for you all over the galaxy.”

—-

Are you happy now?

_ Yes, very. I’m not sure I have ever been more happier. _

Good. See, all that struggle for nothing. You could have had this life from the start.

_ True, but would it have been this sweet? I somehow doubt it. _

Stop being so smart, young little pawn. You still have much to learn.

_ I am looking forward to it. _


End file.
